Friday, August 21, 2009

First Impressions: 'Project Runway' Season 6, Episode 1



I don't often love watching the first episode of reality shows. Even when I'm a loyal fan, the first episode of a new season can be--as one former Runway contestant would tell us--a hot mess. They're trying to shove all of the contestants down your throat, you can't tell anyone apart, and at the end someone gets kicked off about whom you have absolutely no opinion. In short, I'm usually confused more than entertained. But this was not the case with last night's Lifetime premiere of Project Runway. As a true testament to the consistent quality of the show, they managed to present their opener with chaos ordered enough to be understandable, yet frantic enough to be entertaining.

While the opening was at times a little too Real World reminiscent (a bunch of slightly wacky people convening politely in an impossibly posh apartment), it worked. Without really trying, I was able to sort and remember most of the contestants, which really is a feat for a reality show. Johnny is the meth addict, Logan is the "guy's guy," Marvin is androgynous, and Qristyl the plus-size designer. And while these glimpses clearly offer us the season's stereotypes, the other clips of the contestants give enough life to their personalities to make them less than mundane.

On top of the solid opening, the mechanics of the show still work, for the most part. While I prefer the bustling New York backdrop, LA proved an appropriate setting for the show as well. Those that worried the show's jump to Lifetime would breed unwanted changes to the show's structure will find themselves placated. The judges are the same, the music is the same, and the catchphrases are (unfortunately?) the same (though I thought Tim Gunn's last-minute "Make it work" was half-hearted at best). The structure of the show remains untouched, and that is, for the most part, a working formula.

But the show did hit some lower points after the intro and in spite of its still-intact structural elements. Johnny's "breakdown" was implausable and took far too much time. It's early in the season, and Tim should not be a shoulder to cry on as of yet. I much prefer him in the role of Guy Who Walks Around and Makes People Severely Doubt Their Designs. I also now hate Johnny, since he is clearly a needy little bi-otch. And let's just talk about the elephant--excuse me, skeleton--in the room: Lindsay Lohan? Look, I loved Mean Girls as much as the next person, but hearing Lindsay Lohan take down some of the designs (even the ones I really wanted to hear taken down!) really deflated everything for me. Because, well, it's Lindsay Lohan. And I can't help but sneer a little at the fact that she thinks she has valid and worthwhile input on this (or any) topic. These things created a weird middle for me. The show really slowed down and lost a lot of power after the strong open.

All in all, though, the right person went home, which is redeeming. Ari's "disco-ball diaper" design was atrocious, pretentious, and annoying. I'm all for different, but if they tell you pick an award show red carpet, pick an award show red carpet. You know, one from this planet/era. Don't babble on about the 2081 VMAs/Nobel Prizes. While Heidi's kiss of death wasn't entirely unexpected, it was at least validating. Here's hoping the next episode picks up the pace in the middle, stops trying to give Johnny a soap opera and LiLo a platform for "credibility," and does what Project Runway has done best in the past: showcase unique personalities and true talent, while satisfactorily sneering at some true atrocities along the way.

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